


tactical prowess

by galaxyeyedrops



Category: Persona 5
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Established Relationship, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-11
Updated: 2018-09-11
Packaged: 2019-07-11 05:41:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,010
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15965858
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/galaxyeyedrops/pseuds/galaxyeyedrops
Summary: (hifuren for asa!)





	tactical prowess

**Author's Note:**

  * For [alsahm](https://archiveofourown.org/users/alsahm/gifts).



> this takes place in an au where makoto shares sae's palace with goro (so she can stew a bit longer about the pt + it means more to her) and hifumi joins after yusuke

It's become a habit at this point—perhaps soon protocol if they continue to gain members at this rate—but whenever someone new joins the group, Ren takes them shopping.

Hifumi is no exception.

They meet up at the station the day after she awakens. Hifumi's mother grows harsher the more she spirals out of control. Her daughter's church visits are carefully monitored; Kosei High too prone to gossip to offer otherwise.

And so its with a different look, Hifumi greets Ren with that day. Gone are the carefully pressed dresses and skirts. In their place, a baggy hoodie paired with even baggier pants.

"They're my father's," she confesses as they start to walk away from Hachiko's statue. "I don't own many clothes that help draw away attention so I snuck these out of his closet instead."

She smiles, mischievous. It's contagious. Ren finds his own lips stretching to match.

"Looks like you've already got the basic skills down," he says. "At this rate, there won't be much for me to teach you."

Her head dips, pleased. There are words that run through Ren's mind—things about how the afternoon sun illuminates her cheeks just right, giving attention to the slight blush normally hidden by the shadows of her hood—but Iwai's shop comes around the next corner. And with it's approach, Ren's embarrassing attempts at poetry bid him farewell.

The bell jingles as they step in. Iwai looks up, eyes narrowing in recognition.

"Need to swap out?" he asks. By now, familiar with Ren's habit of buying model weapons only to switch them out with newer ones weeks later.

"Not really." Ren gestures to Hifumi. She bows her head with the introduction. "A new customer."

"Hmm." Iwai switches targets. "Anything you got in mind?"

Hifumi bites her lip. "I've been thinking of a melee weapon with a bit of a reach? Something easily maneuverable in an indoor space, though."

Ren raises a brow. "No swords?"

"We already have two specialists," Hifumi explains, turning to face him. "There are plenty of close range fighters—yourself included—so I want a melee weapon that can supplement combat when we switch over to guns."

He nods. "The pointy stuff, right?"

"Of course. There's a fair balance between those and ones that cause blunt force damage, so I'm free to pick whichever."

To the side, Iwai clears his throat. Ren and Hifumi break apart, cheeks flushed.

"We're a roleplay group," Ren says, scrambling for an excuse, no matter how believable. He's pretty sure Iwai _knows_ at this point, but he's never been one for giving up when things got tough.

"Our current campaign has been pretty hard. So we got ourselves a tactician." Close enough to the truth that his voice remains smooth; his delivery, passable.

Iwai doesn't even raise a brow. "There's a couple of polearms in the back," he says, addressing Hifumi once more. "We get a bit of business from those sports club types so we have a decent stock."

He walks to the storage room, busying himself with slim, long boxes Ren's only seen in passing as a part-timer—returning within minutes. He lays each box across the counter, one by one, carefully drawing out each weapon from the wrapped cloth.

The naginata is only the third weapon he brings out, but the moment Hifumi's eyes catch on it, she is convinced.

"May I?" she asks, holding out a hand. Iwai acquiesces.

Hifumi tests its weight, not so much a swing (given the shop's cramped interior) as a quick toss between hands. She nods when she's done, satisfied.

"How much?"

* * *

 

 

No weapon is useful without practice. While not exactly true, it's something hammered into the Phantom Thieves from early on, from Ryuji's very first stumble and miss.

It's a good thing, objectively speaking. Along with the added combat experience, time in Mementos keeps their cash flow running, and does wonders for team cohesiveness.

In fact, it's another one of their practices. Whenever someone joins, the team works together, to get their fighting skills up to par.

This is where Hifumi differs.

 

That morning, Ann had called Ren up—an apology on her lips.

"Sorry, Ren." she said between one incredibly fake cough and another. "But I feel really awful today." She paused then, a second, two, building up to a sneeze and release. It's moderately impressive.

"Are Yusuke and Ryuji sick also?" Ren asks, letting the amusement seep into his tone.

"Nah." A cough. "Ryuji and Yusuke are helping his mom rearrange her living room. Yusuke said something about decor so they can't make it either." Another cough. Ann's dedication: always commendable.

"You want me to drop off Morgana?"

"Won't you need him?'

"We're planning on sticking close to the entrance," Ren says. "I'm pretty sure Morgana's gonna be happy to spend some time with you as well. Wouldn't want to ruin your plans or anything."

"Good," Ann says. Ren can practically hear the smile in her voice. "Have fun!!"

"Is no one else is coming?" Hifumi asks him, hours later. She's wearing a different hoodie, one of Ren's this time. Layered over her dress, it's not exactly a summer ideal, but luckily, it won't be a problem in Mementos.

"They wanted to give us some privacy on our date," Ren explains.

"In Mementos?"

"We'll see how it goes."

She smiles. "I trust you."

 

It isn't misplaced.

Hifumi takes to the Metaverse the same way he does. Quiet enough normally, with a complicated relationship with the spotlight—but given supernatural powers and a chance to shine, something quite literally out of this world.

Her commander is just as over the top as his storybook gentleman thief. In a world of wishes, her confidence makes her stronger; thrusting and parrying, taking out shadows much stronger, barely breaking a sweat.

When the last slime is taken care of, Hifumi sets her naginata aside, collapsing against the wall in exhaustion. "So how did I do?" she asks him.

Ren looks at her and falls a little more in love.

"Amazing," he says.

**Author's Note:**

> first time writing hifumi, trying me best


End file.
